I might be wrong
by Mintaka1
Summary: *Seiftis* new chapter-10, where it began. WHOOHOO!
1. Bittersweet memories

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I might be wrong.  
  
  
  
**Chapter 1- Bittersweet memories.**  
  
  
  
The young SeeD stood alone in the secret area concealed in the 24- hour training centre. No one was around or even awake for that matter, as you would expect in the early hours of the morning. The only sounds were of Mother Nature. The gentle crashing of the waves below and the whistling winds that adjusted the direction of her honey tresses.  
  
It had been nearly two years to the day when she had battled with her friends against the sorceress of the future, Ultimecia. The scene was still vivid, that chain of events even leading up to the battle were memories deeply rooted in her mind, the Dollet mission, the D- district prison, Galbadia Garden, Lunatic Pandora, and of course, the final battle. It was her, Zell, and Squall that were the first to be challenged. Her heart was thumping in her head and her body trembled despite the heat in the throne room.  
  
Ultimecia was slow in her first form, giving them time to heal and defend themselves efficiently before she attacked them again. One meltdown spell and a round of Zell's limit break techniques made her weak enough to remove herself from the battle, and summon her own GF Griever, a wicked beast with five red horns aligned round his head, a pair of silver wings, and a tail as long as his body.  
  
The three SeeDs appeared in a different environment, which was rocky and encased in an overcast sky, and the heat from the previous room replaced by bitter cold. Griever was hovering before them and began the battle with 'Shockwave Pulsar,' a magic attack she had learnt herself. They were left weak and the potent effect of a megaelixer was used and they were instantly revitalised. They fought continuously; using their individual limit breaks to beat him. "Duel!" Zell took his place in the middle of the battlefield and began a series of combos. "Mach kick! Heel drop! Booya! Dolphin blow! My final heaven!" His attacks were indeed strong, but Griever was still left standing. It was Squall's 'Renzokucken' attack that finished him. His strikes were seamless, and Griever's body jerked in pain, and he roared in defeat.  
  
He merged into his own body, creating a dark sphere that rotated on itself. The colour was grey, and the red horns bled into it, marbling the sphere. A small ball of white light appeared from above, and lowered itself into Griever. "I will junction myself unto Griever!" Came a sharp voice from within the shape. The beast and his master had united, and with twice the strength. They fought faster and repeatedly summoned henchmen, casting high power spells. "Megaelixer!" "Big guard!" Recharged, they plunged into battle for the third, and not last time. "Meltdown!"… "Lionhart!"…"Duel!" After a series of limit breaks, and cure spells the battle was over and all three SeeDs survived.  
  
The two monsters screamed in unison and streaks of bright light shot from under their skin. Everything soon went silent, and the whole area went black. No one knew what to expect until a pillar of energy shot upwards, revealing the true form of Ultimecia. "Time shall compress…all existence denied." It seemed as though they were in space. They could see no ground below their feet, and there were stars all around them, for as far as the eye could see. It was as though she controlled them, as they mimicked her every movement.  
  
"Final judgement!" An encrypted circle of fire arose from under them, and they were soon rendered extremely close to death. "Megaelixer!" The familiar icy feeling of the tem coursed through their veins, bringing them back to health. "Triple aura!" One by one, the SeeDs were shrouded by yellow light, enabling them to use their most powerful attacks. "Renzokucken! Fated circle!"…"Duel!" The sorceress's body shuddered at each attack, but it took a while to weaken her. A few more attacks, and she started to show weakness. "Reflect on your…childhood…" She croaked. "Duel!"…"Triple ultima!" Shouted the SeeDs, ignoring her dying words. "Your sensations…your words…your emotions…" She said slipping away ever so slowly. "Lionhart!" Any emotions left in their bodies temporarily escaped them, as they knew the battle's end was soon to come. "Time…it will not wait…no matter how hard you try to hold on…it escapes you…" Were her last struggling words. And that was the end of her. SeeD's very existence to destroy the sorceress had been done, and Quistis was unsure, and a little confused at how she had beaten her. She never thought she had enough strength to even be a SeeD, let alone save the world. Yet she found that time compression was her biggest task. She had never told anyone how hard it was to get home. She didn't say that she hadn't a clue where she really wanted to be, and who with. Because she was alone. Zell, Selphie, Rinoa, Irvine, Squall, Hyne even Seifer had his qualities, but they were all mere acquaintances, not the friends that she wished so dearly for. It wasn't their fault, she was just out of place there and none of them really understood her because she hid it all behind her mask of ice. "Bittersweet memories." She said to the sky, raising her deep glass of sweet smelling alcohol. "…Here's to those times…" She brought the glass to her waiting lips, unaware of the looming figure behind her.  
  
  
  
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~ What do ya think? Should I carry it on? Please review, give any suggestions, point out anything or whatever, but this is my first attempt at fanfiction, so be nice k? Oh and sorry about the crappy summary. If I aid anymore, it would away the plot. Ugh they suck…  



	2. Drunken sorrow

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I might be wrong

Chapter 2-Drunken sorrow.

"Trepe? Who you talking to, the faeries?" She nearly spat out the contents of her mouth hearing that voice. "Almasy! What the hell are you doing here?!" She shrieked. "What, you missed me Instructor?" She rolled her eyes and glared at him. "Well as you can see I'm back and this time it's gonna be different." She laughed at him evilly. "Hyne they let you back in? How did you do it, threaten to blow up Garden again?" He was shocked not to mention enraged. He grabbed both her wrists and pulled close to him. "You're drunk, I can smell it on you."

"Oh really, like I care now get the hell off me." She struggled, trying to wriggle free but she couldn't find any strength. She tried to kick him, but found he was gently stepping on her toes to prevent it. "Let go damn it!" Seifer said nothing, and just looked down at her. "You monster, stop it just leave me alone will you!" He tightened his grip on her even more painfully digging his fingers into her arms. 

"Seifer you're hurting me let go!" She squeaked, crystal tears forming in her eyes and bright blood from her arm. "Not until you calm down." She stopped and looked at him. "Calm down?! You're only doing this because you're enjoying it. And to see me bleed to death." _Forever the drama queen_ he thought. "You will NEVER change Almasy, always using pain to get to people. Everyone thought you would change after your little 'episode' with the sorceress, but ya know what, I think she may of rubbed off on you!" 

He sucked in air through his teeth sharply, trying to hold back the urge to hit her. He had already decided she was doing this to provoke him, to push him over the edge. He wouldn't give her the advantage, or let himself hurt her again. Figuring it to the best option for the both of them, he let go and walked away from her. Without his support, her knees fell inwards and she crumpled onto the floor. 

"What? The brilliant Seifer Almasy is walking away? I don't know why you don't just kill me, I know that would make you happy. To have the mediocre' Instructor's blood on your hands, well come on Seifer, make my day." He gritted his teeth and curled his fists into the palms of his hands. _'She is such a bitch. How can she say that? I hate her, but I don't wanna kill her' _he thought. Right now she was a danger to herself being so drunk.

Quistis was silent for a while. He thought she had calmed down a little, so he turned round suddenly, and was so glad he did. "Quistis what the hell?!" She was clambering over the railings and he found himself running to her, hoping, praying, wishing, that he'd have time to help her. 

Quistis leaned over cautiously, listening to the constant humming spinning gold rings of Balamb Garden. The waves rippled far below her, and they glistened in the beaming lights that illuminated them. It enchanted her, and it was almost as if they were inviting her to join them. Closing her eyes, she gave in, and released her sharp grip on the bars.

She felt a tug at her belt, and strong arms clamp round her middle. She was being pulled back away from the edge, and it took a while for her to sober up and realise what was going on. When her feet landed firmly on the floor of the secret area, her eyes followed up the right arm that was still holding her tightly. Her eyes crashed into those familiar green eyes, and saw the sad reflection of her own tear stained face. "…Seifer?" She whispered. His expression was different somehow. Concern…relief…sincerity…emotions she would have never expected to come from Seifer Almasy.

"For fucks sake Trepe, don't you ever do that to me again you hear?!" The harsh tone of his voice remained the same. "Yeah whatever. It's not like you care anyway." She said, mimicking the sound his voice. "Hyne Quistis, I save your bloody life and you go straight into bitch mode, well that's nice ain't it."…"They're my problems, let me deal with them my own way"…"yeah maybe, but you really think that getting yourself drunk to the point where you're suicidal is the right way? It's a decision you can hardly make Quistis. You ever thought how much you would make everyone suffer? Dumping all your shit onto the people that care about you"…"but I…."…"No don't even say it. You're a friggin hero, how can you ever be lonely? Try being on the other side of the scale, now that's lonely…if I can live with my shoddy life then so can you."_ 'He'll never understand' _she thought _'not my life…no one will.' _She held back the tears, and softened her trembling voice with a weak laugh. "Well thanks for the words of wisdom. It's not everyday Seifer Almasy speaks to anyone like this…I'm so touched." _'She's trying so hard not to break down in front of me I can tell…obviously not hard enough,' thought_ Seifer. "Well it's not everyday I need to. Especially to you." She laughed and casually lay her head against his chest. Seifer felt himself give in to her, and he pulled her into an embrace. He cursed her silently. _'I'm supposed to hate her. I have to, cos she hates me. It's only fair' _he said to himself.

"Hey Quistis I think we should get you back to your dorm"…silence…"Hello?"…Silence still…"What, you're asleep already?" He took hold of her shoulders so he could see her. Her eyes were closed and she looked unusually at peace. "Well, it figures. I guess I have to drag you back to your room then…not that I have a slue where that is." He fumbled with her belt in search of her keys, and muttered apologies to her sleeping form. Eventually he found them tucked away in the left side of her belt, attached to the small chain looped at her waist. "Let's see…room 12. Class A SeeD rooms. Man they'd love to see me there." He placed one hand under her knees, and pulled her up, using his spare hand to support her back. She was surprisingly light he noticed, and carried her quickly to her dorm. 

As he approached his destination, he passed Selphie Tilmitt, the over hyper little messenger girl in the corridor. She looked Seifer, then Quistis, rather confused. "…Umm, what's going on?"…"Way too much alcohol. Pretty lucky I found her actually." She put her hands to her cheeks and sighed. "Oh dear, this is not good. Did she try to…you know, hurt herself again?" Asked her friend in concern. "...Again?" Selphie shuffled her feet and looked to the floor. 

"Yeah, she took an overdose a few months back. It was pretty bad, especially her being in ICU for over a week." For Seifer, it was strange to see Selphie upset. She wore a frown instead of the usual happy grin, and even her sunshine yellow dress seemed darken.

"Why does she do this?" Seifer asked 

"We don't know. We never see her cos she works in the evenings, and never seems to be in her room in the day. All of us are so worried about her Seifer."

"Yeah I bet you are. I'll stay with her until she wakes up okay?"

"But…"

"She'll be fine," he reassured her, "just shut up and go to bed…by the way, what are you doing out so early anyway?" Selphie blushed scarlet red, and tried to hide the embarssment by letting her chestnut hair fall to cover her face. "Oh tut tut Ms Tilmitt." He said smirking.

"Please don't tell anyone you saw me." She pleaded. "…Whatever. Hurry up and go. My arms are gonna collapse any time now if I don't put her down." She nodded and smiled at him, carrying on the escape back to her own room.

Once in Quistis's dorm, Seifer lay her down on the narrow bed. He removed her leather gloves and boots and pulled a blanket over her fragile body. He stood over her for a while as she slept, puzzled. _'What would drive her to want to take her own life…Twice.'_

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Well, second chapter's up. I hope you like it. I rushed it a little so sorry if it's a bit crappy. Thanks LOADS for the reviews despite the small number; you know who you are 

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	3. Here comes the truth

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Here comes the truth.

I might be wrong.

Quistis awoke late that same morning, relieved to see that she was in her normal surroundings, safe and warm in her bed and within easy reach of her old teddy bear, Shamus. She sighed and rolled over towards the wall, recalling the events of a few hours ago. She remembered all of the shameful occasion, much to her dismay. Thinking back, she was more of a bitch to Seifer than she usually was, and she thought that it must have been pretty damn hard for him to keep his cool after all the things she had said and done to him. The tables had turned. Usually it was Seifer who hurled abuse at her when she tried to help, but now it was her was being unnecessarily mean, and he actually saved her life. _'I wonder what he's doing now' _she thought, _'I wonder if he cares.' _She dismissed these thoughts, and pulled her weary not to mention hung over self into a sitting position. "Oh Seifer." She sighed.

"You rang?" She gasped in shock at the sound of his rich voice, and scanned the room for him. Her heart raced when she saw his grey coat slung over her desk, but soon continued searching for him. Her eyes focused on the wicker chair next to her chest of drawers. He was there, slumped, with his arms crossed and his gaze upon her. "Hyne Quistis you are so slow this morning, I wonder why." He laughed at his own comment. "Yeah I guess you're wondering why I'm here. I'll get straight to the point. You fell asleep on me and I carried you here, through much protest I may add. You're really heavy you know."

"Oh, I see." She said quietly, hiding the amusement in her voice. Seeing him carrying her through Garden must have been a sight to see. "There was no reason to stay though. I was asleep. What would I of done?" He took hold of the sides of the chair, and heaved his heavy aching form from it. Sighing, he walked over to her. "As a matter of a fact, I did. Just think for a minute will you? You were there you know what happened. You know as well as I do that you would undoubtedly do it again if my back was turned." Quistis let out of bed, despite the thumping headache and the sickly feeling of nausea washing over her. She raised a finger and pointed it in his chest. "Now look. I do not need some kind of babysitter, especially you. " 

"What the hell does that mean? So you don't think that I did it because maybe I was worried about you? I do have a once of compassion you know. Not many people would just walk away without trying to be the hero, and that includes me too."

"So you wanted to have the glory? Have people praise _you_ for once perhaps…that seems more likely than you caring."

"Hyne Quistis what is this all about? I saved your life, why does which make me bad? But I'll tell you something; this would be a different story if Squall were standing here right now."

"Don't you dare bring him into this!" She cried, in a state of enrage. 

"Oh you know it's true. You are so disappointed that you found a traitor like me saved your life instead of your precious puberty boy."

"That's shit Almasy!" She spat. 

"No… It is very true. You have always had some kind of hatred towards me haven't you? Even before Ultimecia." His voice was raised now, and the two youths were almost nose to nose, both uncaring of how many people could here this tender argument.

"You tried to destroy everything important to me, how can I forgive you so easily?" 

"Don't twist this. That has nothing to do with it. You know I wasn't in control of my mind when Ultimecia was alive. I'm still paying for that as you know, and I have learnt some valuable lessons from that too. I have changed"

"NO!" She screamed. "You will never change! You will always be the selfish bastard who taunted me and always made out I was nothing. I tried to help you, but I see now that it was a waste of time because you will never be a SeeD. This is not some kind of game."

"If I thought it was, I wouldn't be here again would I? SeeD is an important aspect in my life, and I really want to succeed. And before all this happened, I still had the same dreams. I wanted to prove you wrong, but I never could because there was always Squall. He got everything I wanted, and I always wondered why I was always inferior to him. What the hell did he have that I couldn't give you? I had the strength, I had the intellect, and I had feelings too, and if you weren't so bitter and harsh to me, I would have shown you. But you never gave me the time of day. You just gave up on me, and labelled me a failure as soon as I entered your classroom. I wish you could be proud of me, at least once, but you are so right. I will never change, and I will always be a failure in your eyes and mine" 

Seifer's voice was trembling, and both of them were shocked at the sudden outburst of honest truth. For him, he had never dreamed of letting out on how he felt, and he was angry with her for making him do it. "Thank you for your gratitude Trepe. I'll never forget it." He said mockingly as he looked at her for one last time. And as she opened her mouth to share her feelings also, she found him already gone. She had lost her chance.

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Well that's finally done…and probably a bit over dramatic, but I'm not exactly brilliant at this. Anyway, please R+R. J Thanks!

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	4. Resurfacing

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Resurfacing. 

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I might be wrong.

They had avoided each other since then…well, that was not entirely true, as Seifer was on a SeeD mission and desperately wanted to see Quistis and Quistis was just unsure and perhaps a little apprehensive of seeing Seifer. She had done more thinking, which annoyed her as they all came done to Seifer and what he had said that morning. She hated herself, but she hated him too. It was her fault because she had provoked him to say those things, and it ended up hurting her, so she had brought it on herself really.

She could see how he felt in every word he said, and the emotion shown in his eyes…anger…jealously…sadness…loneliness…she saw it and she could almost relate too. But the way he had mentioned her had really brought it to her. It was her fault he failed, he had more or less said that, but she knew that it wasn't a matter of hate, not even close. It was true, she was more proud of Squall because than Seifer, but only because Squall made it as a SeeD and even became the commander of Garden. But she admired Seifer more for his compassion in his work, and his sheer brilliance. He was a strong fighter and a true man but she never told him. Everyone had said how he would never make SeeD because he never had the will. From his attitude they presumed him to be rather sloppy and brash in battle, but they had never seen him fight…

They were both 17, and she had just got her instructor's license. Her first assignment was to take Seifer for his practical exam in the Esthar plains and acquire a low level earth element GF. She had secretly watched him and was truly fascinated by his grace and determination. He took so much care to refine his techniques that the battle was won with little time and fuss, and without the slop and impulsiveness that everyone thought. She could almost say that he was…perfect?

She breathed heavily and opened her eyes. _'It's time I admitted defeat,' _she thought,_ 'and it's time to be honest for a change. I owe him that much.'_ She sat up and swung her legs off the bed. Quistis walked over to the mirror and cringed at the bedraggled form of herself looking back at her. She sighed and strolled over to the bathroom where she had a shower. 

Emerged clean from the shower, she grabbed a fluffy blue bath towel and wrapped it around herself tightly. She searched her wardrobe for suitable attire for her casual, uninformed meeting with her former student. She wouldn't be working in the day, so she dismissed her stiff SeeD uniform and opted for a simple black knee length skirt, a blue shirt and black knee high boots. 

She combed her hair, and blew dried it poker straight, She tied it back into a loose ponytail and applied her glasses before looking in the mirror again. She was reasonably impressed. Her outfit clung to her, emphasising the curves and contours of her slim figure. She smiled weakly back at her reflection and took her dorm keys from the dressing table.

Walking through Garden in public again seemed strange to her, as she only came out in the evenings. She had been offered her old instructor's licence after her and her friends had saved the world from time compression. Surprisingly she had said no. She couldn't teach. She had a lot of things to learn herself. Instead she took the job of being Cid's assistant in the office, so she could be cut off from Garden students all together, and that meant her friends too…yes she missed them a lot...

Suddenly she heard her name being called over the long halls, making many heads turn to see the speaker. "QUISTIS!!!" There was a shrill voice from behind her, and she knew it straight away as being Selphie. The petite girl ran as fast as she could, and flung her arms around her neck, almost knocking the air out of her lungs. "Oh Quisty I've missed you so much!" She said as she clung to her friend. Quistis gently pulled her away so she could actually breath, and smiled. Selphie looked at her, bewildered. "I can't believe you've finally resurfaced."

"Yeah well, someone brought be back to reality." Selphie smiled as if she knew. "Well that's good. Come on, I was just going to meet up with everyone in the cafeteria for breakfast, they'll be so happy to see you!" She nodded, and they both walked to meet them.

When they arrived, Zell had already seen them and was rushing over from his table to greet them. "Quistis, is that you?" Giving her no time to answer, he enclosed her a tight bear hug. "Ha! Long time no see eh?"

"Yes it has been a while."

"Well don't just stand there, come join us for breakfast!" They all walked the short distance to the circular table in a space away from other students. Everyone stood up to hug their friend, who they had missed dearly, and they eventually sat back down in their seats. "So, how has everyone been?" The statement caused uproar, as everyone spoke at once. Quistis raised a hand, and everyone turned to her. "Hey, one at a time. Selphie you first." She took a deep breath and began to speak. "Well, you haven't been here for a while so a lot's happened. I passed my instructor's licence a month back. I teach the junior classmen, which as you probably know is a nightmare but I really love it. Irvine enrolled in SeeD last term. I'm so proud of him." She turned to Irvine and grinned, who was furiously blushing in his seat. "I'm a nurse in the infirmary." Chirped Rinoa. "I started when Nurse Rae left and since then Dr Kadawaki has been teaching me. Squall's still commander aren't you Squall?" The man next to her nodded and smiled which seemed strange to her. "And Zell, what have you been doing?" Said Quistis. "Not much actually. Just helping Edea and Cid rebuild the orphanage."

Quistis smiled. Truthfully, and it had been a long time sine she felt the need to. She had to admit it felt good being with them, despite her doubts of them. "How about you Quistis?" Said Squall. The table went silent. She sighed and prepared to speak. "I've been very selfish haven't I? I cut myself of from the world and I regret that now. I stopped you from seeing me, and stopped myself from letting you know how I was, and I'm sorry for that; it was wrong I know. What I have done has hurt you, and has made my problems and feelings fester. They have got worse and has the time has made it go beyond any help now. You could have helped me if I let you, but I just pushed you away. I'm lucky to have any friends left at all for what I've done…some friend I am." She tried to fight back any tears, and just hung her head looking at her laced hands.

"Please don't feel guilty Quisty. We don't want that, we just want you back as our friend…our sister. We stuck together through some hard times and we are all grateful to you in a lot of ways. Now let us help you in any way we can, ok?" The once emotionless man she thought she was in love with was now almost a different person. Rinoa must have trained him well.

Squall pushed his hand into the middle of the table, and everyone looked at him in puzzlement. "All of us are here now. Let's keep it that way." Everyone nodded in agreement, and then Selphie put her hand in to the middle, followed by Irvine, then Zell and Rinoa. Quistis chucked slightly and joined the pact. She decided that she had friends after all. That's where Seifer was right. 

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Sorry for taking ages…I'm just lazy sometimes, plus I'm in the middle of exams so bear with me! Anyway, I was actually supposed to include the meeting with Seifer in this chapter, but in my opinion it was getting kinda long, and my brother was moaning because I've been on it ages. I've worn out all my bribes. _You'll have to wait until next chappy. R+R! Thanx J _

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	5. The way home

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The way home

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I might be wrong

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'Life's a bitch' thought Seifer, as he glared in disgust at the prostitutes approaching the taxi taking him and his comrades to their destination. _'Everything goes wrong, everyone turns sour, and I'm no different. But why can't life be happy for at least one day_? _Happiness is an emotion that I'm unsure of, along with love and commitment. What are they anyway? How exactly can you tell when you're feeling it? Especially if your heart is made of stone?' _He asked himself…he asked himself the same sort of question everyday.

"Well hey there boys, in need of some satisfaction?" Came a sultry voice at the passenger window. _'She's trying too hard' _he thought. Annoyed at the bother, Seifer wound down the window and stuck his head out a fraction. "Now listen you cheap little whores, get the fuck away from the car and I swear I'll snap your friggin necks, you hear me?" He said venomously. The three girls backed away, their tacky PVC boots clacking and clicking against the paved road.

The traffic lights bared the green light, and the engine revved. Seifer stuck up his middle finger to them as the taxi sped away, and the faint sound of abuse being thrown at him grew ever quieter as they made their way up the road. Seifer laughed to himself and shut the window. "Satisfaction…heh yeah right. I'd have more fun with a dead chocobo." The silence turned to laughter, and the very formal atmosphere seemed to been lifted.

Since being on the mission to Deling, Seifer had thought about Quistis a lot. She plagued his thoughts non-stop come to think of it. He replayed that whole incident. The things they said in the training centre, what he heard from Selphie, the argument they had in her dorm when she woke up. She hated him, from what she said had confirmed it, but he never expected to tell her how he felt about it, it was very unlike him…and he was embarrassed. But what did it mean to her? Did she even care? He doubted it very much. What got him was that he actually thought that he could be in love with her. He wasn't sure how, or even if he did, but he felt something he couldn't describe when she was around and it went into overload that night. It really bugged him that he couldn't quite figure out what it meant.

He thought it was lust. She was a beautiful woman no doubt about it but it seemed to go deeper than physicalities and sex, he wanted more. He longed for her respect, her love. He craved it. He let out a sigh of disappointment…he know all too well that he would never get it. His chain of thoughts broke as the car screeched to a halt. Seifer opened his door and stepped out, 'DELING STATION' read the sign above him. "Come on people move it, we're here." He hollered to his team mates.

Seifer walked over to platform 4 where their train was stationed. He reached into the breast pocket of his black shirt and pulled out three tickets. He handed them to the ticket guard and he eyed them briefly. "…Mr Russell, Mr Astin, and Mr Rennison, is that correct?"

"Yes that is right." Said Seifer.

"The train will be departing almost immediately. You should board now."

"We understand. Thank you." He gave him a slight nod of acknowledgement, and the SeeDs filed onto the cabin.

The sliding doors shut behind them, and two of the SeeDs began to walk away and explore the train, when Seifer outstretched his left arm in an order to wait. "Stop," he said. "This is a trap, they know who we are." 

The shortest of the three stepped forward. "How do you now this?" He said rather cautiously. Seifer looked around the cabin and inspected part of the wall farthest away from them. He put his hands to it and felt for a seam, which pulled downwards revealing a large obscure symbol painted in red paint and outlined in a thick black line. "As I thought." Said Seifer. "What the hell is that?" Cried the small SeeD. "Well Korben, this is the sign of a rebel faction I've heard of. Followers of the late sorceress, Ultimecia." Seifer said that name with such scorn, as he bitterly recalled the days when she was alive. "They call themselves The Alaudae."

This time the taller and rather plump of the SeeDs spoke, "well, why are they after us?"

"Not us, me. I was Ultimecia's knight as you may remember. When I broke free of her mind control and deserted her, it was considered betrayal. And now they're after me… how nice."

"What can we do?"

"Right now, nothing. All of us have to stay here."

"Can't we fight them?" Korben asked.

"With three SeeDs? We may be qualified SeeDs, but that's not enough. What you're talking about is suicide." Seifer told him. There was a brief silence before Korben spoke again. "Where are they taking us?"

"Probably their temporary hideout. They're always on the move."

"What about the radio? Why don't we contact Garden?" Seifer thought about it.

"…Do we know if it's secure? They could be tracking any communication." He inquired.

"It's designed to be secure" 

"Ok, give it to me." Seifer ordered. He took it, and tapped in the line number. The sound of static filled the cabin. "This is student no. 140577, Balamb Garden do you read?…"

"Affirmative. What is your position cadet?…"

"Me and my tem have been led into a trap, and are on a train. I have reason to believe that this is The Alaudae, and I have no doubt that they are after me…"

"I understand. Where did you take the train?…"

"Deling station, platform 4, at 10:37pm exactly…"

"Ok we're on it. Sit tight helps on the way…" Seifer turned off the radio and handed it back. Balamb knew of the Alaudae. When Seifer was readmitted into Garden, it was to keep him hidden and safe from these people, and he was so grateful to them, Squall included. But right now, he was feeling anxious. How long would they be? And what exactly did The Alaudae want to do with Seifer now they finally had him? He didn't want to know.

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Yay next chapter up! Thanx for the reviews, I nearly didn't continue. I'm not sure if I like this chapter, but I guess it's okay, would do you think??? J 

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Disclaimer: I'm making up for all the ones I didn't include…I don't own anything, the big people in Squaresoft do, you all know it. L 


	6. The extraction mission

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I might be wrong

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Chapter 6-The extraction mission.

"Will the following SeeDs please report to the headmaster's office immediately: Zell Dincht, Quistis Trepe, and Selphie Tilmitt. That is Zell Dincht, Quistis Trepe and Selphie Tilmitt to report to the headmaster." 

Quistis put down the book she was reading and looked up, hearing Squall's monotone voice echoing through Garden. She stood from her seat and carried her book over to the library counter, where an assistant was waiting. "Hello Ms Trepe, may I help you?" The young girl said happily. "Yes, could you put this by for me until I come back please Isobel. I need to see Commander Leonhart." The girl nodded and took the large hardback book from Quistis's hands. "Thank you very much. I'll probably pick it up later today if I can. I'll see you then." Isobel finished writing down her name on a bit of card attached to the book, looked up and smiled. "Okay. Bye Ms Trepe." Quistis nodded in acknowledgement and walked away from the library. 

While walking, Quistis spotted a familiar blond man ahead of her. "Zell!" She called. He turned at his name being called and jogged over to her. "Oh hey Quistis. Any idea why Squall wants to see us?" He asked. "No none. Maybe a mission." She suggested. "Yeah, could be."

They continued to the office in silence, and when they entered, Both Squall and Selphie were already stood at Cid's desk. "Ah good to see you both."

"You called for us Sir?" Said Zell.

"Yes," he said with a sigh, slumping deep into his leather chair, "it's on a rather important mission, and you four are of the best SeeDs I have and as Rinoa and Irvine are already away on the mission to Timber, you are the only ones." Cid paused, sipping his coffee. "There was a mission, about a month ago where I sent three SeeDs to extract a Deling politician from the custody of an unknown rebel faction who are currently working on sabotaging the Galbadian government. Kidnapping this particular man was a step up from their plan. Infiltrating their base and finding out their plans was also part of the mission. The SeeDs in question are Korben McKay, Warren Atkins, and Seifer Almasy. The mission went well as far as I know, but we got word from Mr Almasy a few minutes ago saying they had been ambushed on the train home, and are being held captive by a group of followers of the late sorceress Ultimecia, The Alaudae. From our logic, we think they are still bitter over her death and are seeking revenge in not only SeeD, but Ultimecia's former knight, Seifer Almasy."

Zell took a step toward the middle-aged man, and placed his hands firmly on the desk, and leaned in toward his face. "So this is a rescue mission I take it?"

"Yes Zell, you are indeed correct." Zell sniggered. "Saving Almasy's sorry ass? I don't think so!" 

"So what are we up against?" Said Squall ignoring Zell's petty protests.

"Well," he said with a sigh "they are accomplished in the dark arts, their battle techniques and magic are very much similar to that of Ultimecia. According to our records, 30 members are currently working in Galbadia alone. I'm thinking this group are those that are hiding our SeeDs."

"Do you know where they are?" Selphie said.

"Yes we do. At the moment they are travelling on a train along the coast of Timber, near Mandy Beach. The Ragnorock is waiting at the South Gate. The navigator aboard will guide you to your position. Selphie, I wish for you to pilot the ship. Now go quickly, and be weary, you don't know what they are capable of. Dismissed."

The SeeDs gave their headmaster a salute and walked out to the waiting ship. Quistis spoke nothing, and was in a mild state of shock. She felt it was a cruel twist of fate that he had gone at such a time when they had left their conversation on such a bad note. She had things to say, and was now afraid that she was never going to be able to, and that Seifer may die thinking that she hating him, and thought of him as a failure, as the reject compared to Squall. She knew it herself as not to be true. _'Oh Seifer please don't die, there's so much I need to say to you.' _

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…Sorry everyone for the delay. Cursed exams!!! This is quite short I know, and perhaps a bit boring, but it's just a sort of bridge between the last chapter and the next, if you know what I mean. Thanks for your nice reviews *sniff sniff* Anyway, enjoy, and R+R! J oh and by the way, there's been some kind of mix up between chapter 1 + 2, so if you haven't read the first 2 chapters, read the 2nd one first. And if anyone knows how to sort this out, I'd be EXTREMLY grateful.

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Disclaimer: This isn't mine blah blah blah


	7. Meanwhile

I might be wrong by Mintaka.

Chapter 7-meanwhile…

The air around them was tense. Seifer recognised it as fear, although himself, he felt apprehension instead. He sat cross-legged in the darkest corner of the room, with his fingers laced together supporting his chin, and a firm frown creasing his brow. 

Korben was huddled against a wall with his head in his knees, and his eyes focused on a very interesting part of the opposite wall. Shawn was standing in the centre of the cabin trying to get a message through to Balamb Garden. From where Seifer was sitting it looked hopeless enough. 

"Jeez what's taking them so long? Hey Seifer why aren't they here?" Said Shawn looking down on Seifer.

"Do I look like the fucking oracle to you?" He said. "Just calm down will you, they'll be here." Seifer said firmly. Shawn simply shrugged and turned away.

Suddenly, the train jolted and it seemed as though the train had stopped. From where the symbol of the Alundae had appeared earlier, a trail of flames led round into a rectangle, forming what looked like a doorway. The makeshift door rippled away into nothing, and three figures dressed entirely in black emerged. 

They walked in silently and stood before the young men. "These are the SeeDs?" One said, it's voice raspy. "And this one," It said pointing to Seifer, "is the thing that betrayed our Queen?" It walked toward him menacingly, its finger still out pointed. 

The other two SeeDs backed away in alarm, alerting the other cloaked beings. They screeched and advanced on the men, one grabbing Shawn by his throat and the other dragged Korben painfully by his leg out of the room. 

This left Seifer and the last being alone. "Where are they taking them?" Seifer asked. "It doesn't matter, you won't be seeing them alive again." The thing hissed, its face getting ever closer to Seifer's. "Sssseifer Almasssy…" Its hand closed in on Seifer's face, releasing some kind of vapour from pores in its hands, making it increasingly difficult for him to breathe. "What…the hell...is this?…" He managed out, through the coughing and spluttering. Eventually he felt himself defocus, and all he could see were shades of purple…

~*~*~*~

"There! Over there! That's where the co-ordinates match!" Quistis yelled.

Zell followed Quistis' eyes looking confused. "But all we see is forest."

"…" She hesitated. "Lower down, we might see something." The Ragnorock dived down toward the clump of trees. "Circle round, there, go over there. It looks different from the rest, some sort of parting in the trees." It headed for the area, and sure enough there was a gap in the trees…it was a train tunnel.

~*~*~*~

When Seifer awoke, he firstly noticed the heat. He found himself lying on his back, and saw nothing but pitch black. He outstretched his arms, feeling a barrier just above his face. He tried to raise his head, but was prevented going any further than an inch or so. He elbowed the sides but also found there were walls either side…He was boxed in.

Seifer was scared and began to panic. He had been claustrophobic since that time when Zell and Squall had locked him in the place they used to call the 'creepy closet.' He had been there for nearly the whole night screaming until Quistis and Ellone had found him. He remembered literally jumping into Quistis' arms shaking and crying in hysterics. He hated Zell and Squall for that ever since.

He felt his whole body tremble, and his breathing was shallow. His body temperature increased and he felt himself burn up entirely. "Oh Hyne this isn't happening, this isn't happening, please oh Hyne help me…" He said pleadingly. "Oh but I believe it is." Came a voice, loud and clear, from somewhere. Seifer tried frantically to find it, tracing it to a small hole in the upper left-hand side corner of the box. He reached up to find it and noticed it was not a hole but a pipe of some sort. "What the hell is this?" He yelled. The person laughed. A loud and throaty laughed that seemed to shake his senses…he knew that laugh, and that voice from somewhere…but where?

"We thought you'd be safer confined in a box underground. You'll be far too busy thinking about your fear than how to find a logical way to escape. You see, you Mr Almasy have far too much power to be left tied to a chair with one of our guards standing over you. So we wracked your memories to find an answer…and this is what we found! A fear of confinement, and not being able to escape. Now aren't we clever?"

"What the hell do you want with me? If it's revenge, why don't you just kill me already?" Seifer called up to the voice.

"We want your power Mr Almasy. After we have it, we won't have any need for you and then we'll kill you. Revenge comes last when power is concerned." The man haughtily replied.

"What fucking power!" Seifer was getting increasingly exasperated and you could tell he was getting more and more panicky.

"An acquired power some may say." Was all he said before Seifer could hear his retreating footsteps.

*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*

"Now what?" Huffed Zell. They had walked a good half-hour and still saw nothing.

"Well according to the Garden tracker system, the train is stationary somewhere in this tunnel." Said Squall looking at the small contraption beeping in his hand.

Quistis, who was up ahead, stopped suddenly, turning to her friends. "Hey you guys, the track stops here. If the train is supposed to be in the tunnel, where can it go if there isn't a track?" Zell and Squall hurried to catch up with her. "Yeah that is strange. There has to be something wrong with the damn computer. Squall man, contact Garden, see what's going on."

"Zell I doubt there's anything wrong with it. We got the co-ordinates straight from Garden, it's controlled by satellite." Zell stomped over to Squall and snatched the computer from him. "Look, there has to be something up with it, cos it's impossible for a train to just disappear from the track and there still be a record of it being here. Think bloody logical will you!" Shouted Zell. Quistis meanwhile had thought of something. "HEY! Zell, come here." Zell looked round to her and obeyed. She could sound pretty scary at times.

"When you walked over there," she said pointing over to a spot by the track, "there was a different sound. As if you were walking on a plank of something..." She herself, walked over to the spot, and stamped her foot against it. It made an almost hollow sound. She demonstrated the difference on a spot just a little way beside it. "It sounds like Quisty's onto something..." Chanted Zell. Quistis bent over the spot and wiped her hand over it, pushing the dust and dirt away from it. "Look, there's a line between it. As if it's been covered over...covered another track...Squall, do you think you could pry it open?" Squall stepped forward, and took out his gunblade. Placing the point of the blade at the crack, Squall prised it open, leaving enough space for something to be seen. "A track. That means the train veered off to this side. I'm thinking that this wall," said Quistis, pointing to the wall ahead of the concealed track, "is a hidden entrance to where the train went. Maybe even the hideout."

"So what do we do?" Questioned Zell.

"Simple really. We blow it up. Everyone stand back...AURA!" Said Quistis. Zell and Squall took refuge behind a rather convenient boulder. "MICRO MISSILES!" From around her came several small explosives. One after the other, they collided with the wall, making the air full of smoke and dust. 

When it was over, and the dust settled, the three SeeDs had come for what they were looking for, and a lot more besides...

*.*.*.*.*.*.*

Seifer was having a panic attack. He was making it worse by struggling frantically to get out, screaming and shouting, decreasing the oxygen even faster, making his throat tight. He was coughing and gasping for air, and the sweat poured off his face in drops. "Let me the hell out! I can't breathe down here! Let me the fuck out you bastards!" He hollered his throat dry. 

After a while, he heard the sound of footsteps, several by the sound of it. "Yes Mr Almasy, we can hear you. Unfortunately, we have to let you out. You're in enough shock so I don't think you'll be a bother to us for a while. EVERYONE! Extract the box!"

From above, there were several of the black cloaked beings that were seen aboard the train. They were headed for a large wheel, in which they all stood at and began to turn it with increasing speed. This operated a set of cogs, which opened up a space in the floor. The pipe that Seifer had to breathe, was left standing upright, while the box containing Seifer was finally exposed, released from its vice. Once this was fully opened, the beings stood motionless at the wheel, and a large crane-like device descended down to the box. The four arms outstretched, and gripped the box, raising it out of the gap, then dropping it to the floor in front of the only man whose face was seen through his cloak.

In his hand were two keys. Taking both, he inserted them into twin slots on the box. With a small beep, it opened, revealing a shocked Seifer. "Take our guest to the temple.

*.*.*.*.*.*

"FULL-LIFE!" The impact from the Ultima spell from the last enemy knocked Zell out straight. He stumbled to his feet, and landed a hefty punch to the side of the remaining enemy, making it fall to the floor in a heap. "Is everyone okay? We took quite a beating there." Breathed Squall.

"Yeah man that was tough. Got knocked out by a single spell, they're pretty tough. Hope Seifer and his team's okay." By the sound of his name, Quistis looked up. That fight was hard on all three of them and they were of the best-trained in Garden. Thinking about how Seifer and two rookie SeeDs would do in that situation scared her. Especially as Seifer was their primary object. She didn't want to know. She just wanted him out of there in one piece. "Hey Quistis!" Zell interrupted her thoughts. "Come on, Squall found a way into the base." 

*.*.*.*.*.*

"Cuff him to the manacles. No there you idiot, inside the pentacle. And take off that shirt, we need the mark exposed." Seifer's black shirt was ripped from his back and he was slung into the centre of a large circular symbol painted onto the floor, of what looked to be blood. In a futile attempt to escape, Seifer leaped out of the circle. He was immediently surrounded by what appeared to be skinless humans, each wielding hammers and maces, some daggers and one, who was behind him, had a chain. The same thing raised its arm and flicked the chain downward toward Seifer. He could just see the glint of the sharp end before he felt it tearing the flesh on his back.

"STOP! Leave him, we need the man alive and kicking until the end of the ceremony understood?" The things groaned in acknowledgement, and herded him back to the pentacle. One rebelled, and punched Seifer straight in the mouth, its jagged knuckles piercing his skin, making blood spray from his mouth. "ENOUGH!" The things cowered away from the man, tripping over the rebel in the process. "You dare to disobey me priest? Do you think yourself of higher rank, of higher power? I think not. For that, I will deny you access to justice. You will never see your Queen's failure suffer. Have fun in limbo." The man opened up his palm revealing a white ball of fire. Moving at its own accord, if engulfed the rebel head first until nothing remained, accept its fading screams.

"Mr Almasy so glad to see you finally made it. Do you like the temple? Its all for your benefit you know so I hope you're grateful."

"Why am I here? What the hell is this about?" Seifer said quietly.

"Well, let me tell you a story. When you were born, and sent to the orphanage all those years ago, you believed that you had no family. All of them you thought had died in the sorceress war bravely. Now that is not entirely true. You see before you were even born, your mother Ellen had made a vow. To have you betrothed.

"On the night of your birth, our Queen found out from a very reliable source, that your mother was plotting something. Your father was going to assassinate her daughter Lanea. So she waited. Concealed in her daughter's bedroom waiting for your father. When the killer walked in, he didn't even need to make two steps before he was dead...but it wasn't your father Seifer. Your father was in the delivery room with your mother. He had killed all our Queen's servants and he escaped just as she arrived, and he had something with him...but it wasn't you, because you weren't even born yet, it was your sister, Felicity Almasy." Seifer gasped. "My sister? You're lying."

"No, I'm sorry but I'm not. Now let me finish...your father, Merron, was of special blood. As was your mother. They had immense power, power of which they passed onto you. He was a demon...your mother was an angel, making you something of both, a hybrid of an antithesis, which is why we wanted you, and your sister."

"Why now? Why not when we were born?" Seifer said, aghast

"You were of no use to her until you came of age. You both had the power but it is only at its strongest now. For you, because you never knew about it, it simply lay dormant.

So when Ultimecia found your father and sister, they sent you both to opposite orphanages, to grow up knowing nothing."

"What happened to my father?"

Oh he was taken care of...She made him her knight by possession. And the day he died, was the day you were appointed her new one."

Seifer was completely taken aback. His life had just been told to him at 20 years old, when he should have known...he thought he knew. He hated Ultimecia for what she had done to him, but he despised her even more. His mother...his father. Being her knight was a hereditary status and what he went through was a mirror image of his father's life. Not knowing what he was. He never had an inkling. He felt the anger boil up inside of him and he wanted to scream. He wanted to kill everyone around. For doing this to his family, but it was useless, he was cuffed to rusty manacles, with his strength sapped and fear and shock still consumed him. "Why the hell are you telling me this?!" Shouted Seifer in an outburst.

He laughed mockingly. "Cause its funny! Not to mention ironic, hearing your family history, something kept from you all your life, and then you die! Seriously, it's so funny I can't contain myself!" He laughed again, his voice bellowing throughout the high ceilinged temple.

"Oh really Poldarn, it's not that funny. Let the poor bastard die with at least a small part of his dignity left." A female voice broke the laughter, although you wouldn't think such a gentle voice could. "Princess..." He mumbled, bowing at her feet.

At first glance, she looked at least Seifer's age, maybe older, but she still held that look of girlish beauty. Her raven black hair was tied back in a knot, some parts left loose, hanging down past her face. Up close you could see that her eyes were purple, and her face was painted with make-up which was rather severe. She was dressed in a striking red dress that pooled around her feet as she stood, and wore a belt and twin choker, encrusted with rubies and jade gems. Held in her left hand was a staff, which stood higher than she was.

"Seifer Almasy. Let me say, that it is a pleasure to see you after all these years, although I know that you won't remember. My name is Lanea Himinarti. I am your fiancé, yet it is very sad that we will never be able to such a delightful ceremony that would be our wedding. But I suppose this will compensate my disappointment considerably." The door behind her opened, revealing two of the cloaked guards carrying in what appeared to be a young woman. "Put the girl on the other pentacle." Said Lanea.

The woman was conscious, but barely. She made no struggle, and she lay limp inside another circle next to Seifer. He looked at her curiously. _Could this be my_ _sister?_ He thought. "You, priests, line up around the pentacles. We need to extract their power. Channel it to me, all to me, I want the power!"

The priests obeyed, and without hesitation, they all began to systematically chant, an aura of green light radiating from each of them. Both Seifer and the woman began to feel pain as if their whole body was being torn apart. They felt as though their soul was beginning to surface and leave their bodies...it was a sudden feeling of emptiness.

Out of nowhere, there was a rumble and a crash. The ceiling burst open, and a shadow loomed over the temple. Seifer looked above him, shielding his eyes at the heavy light. He only had one though in his mind...

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Quezacotl...

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WHOO HOO!!!! An update! WHOO HOO!!! I'm fairly happy with this chapter...the only problem being that Seifer's life story may be a bit patchy. If you have got confused then say so in your reviews *hint hint* And seriously, I am SO sorry about the time issue. I had GCSEs to do at the time and now college's started, I'm left with NO time... well barely. But I will be updating this, cos I'm using it for a piece of coursework. HA sneaky...I hope they don't know about final fantasy 8...

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Disclaimer: Yeah I know it's not mine, must you rub it in?!?!?!


	8. A much needed rescue

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I might be wrong, by Mintaka

A most needed rescue

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Just before…

As they added through the underground tunnels, with Squall and Zell just a bit ahead, Quistis felt her whole body shudder. It was if there had been a sudden gust of cold wind that blew her from all directions. Her lungs were feeling constricted and she clutched at her chest. She froze on the spot and flung out an arm and let out a screech to her comrades in alarm. They both turned to face her just as her legs gave out and she fell to her knee. Hastily they ran over to her aid.

But she was oblivious to them now. Her whole head was spinning and her vision was nothing but thick smog. Everything in her head convulsed and she could hear an almost static noise, at an immensely high pitch and so loud and frightening it made her eyes water. Even her teeth ached. 

She thought she could faintly make out a voice but she wasn't sure. "…Qui…hy…he..l…p…" _'Seifer?'_…ple..it…re…y….hu…..r…hel…me…ahh…!…" _'What the hell is this? Seifer? Is that Seifer?' _"Seifer, can you hear me? Where are you, what's going on?" She tried to call out to him, but was followed by the static noise and blinding pain. She screamed in agony inside her head. _'What the hell is happening to me? Why am I hearing his voice?' _"…Qui…here….?…whe…he…lp…" _'His voice, he heard me too?' _"Seifer, tell me where you are." The pain settled in again, which was becoming less excruciating and Seifer's voice was a bit clearer. "…Under…groun…temple…" The pain subsided and she could hear is voice properly now. "I'm in some temple, please Quistis, help me. I'm going to die." It was like talking to him face to face, yet she felt blind. There was a sense of something in his voice that made Quistis wonder whether it was Seifer or not. He sounded like a little boy lost. Vulnerable and afraid and it wasn't like him at all. It made her worried. "Seifer no don't say that, you won't die. Just wait a little longer ok? We'll be here soon to get you." She reassured.

"No, you don't understand, I'm dying Quistis. I feel my soul, it's dying too. You can't help me now, please go back, I don't want you to get hurt." His voice was trembling. He was scared, and she knew that he didn't want her to go anywhere. "No I'm not leaving you behind, I can't do that. Just wait for a little while. But you have to help me. I need you to break this physical connection so I can find you. Then I want you to keep talking to me, tell me where to go." Her voice sounded confident and she really hoped that he would see that and trust her. And hearing silence, she wondered if he was pondering the idea. After noticing him sigh, maybe in relief she thought, there was a cold airy sensation. Her eyes came into focus and she had never felt so happy to see dirt on the ground.

"Quistis! Wake up man, just open your eyes!" Zell's concerned yet irritated voice brought her fully back into reality. Rubbing her eyes, she tried to move into a sitting position with one arm. She was finding it useless. "Damn it, help me up." She commanded. They complied immediently and helped her to her feet. "What the hell was that?! Hyne damn it woman you scared us to death!" Yelled Zell, pointing a finger at her. She took no proper notice. "It doesn't matter right now, just follow me I know where to go."

"…Just ahead…the corridor…" 

Her head moved at its own accord, making her turn to what she saw to be a shadow. Heading toward it, she saw it to be a small corridor. The ceiling was low and the walls narrow. "Come on, this way." Both Zell and Squall looked at her blankly at first, but noticing she wasn't stopping for their confused questions, they obediently followed. The three SeeDs had to bend slightly and pass through sideways, before they reached the end, which was a dimly lighted space with a high ceiling. The wall ahead looked slightly curved, as if the two adjacent walls were built around it. Looking closer, she could see faint markings engraved onto the stone, although there were too faint to see.

"…Left…staircase…" 

It was Seifer's voice again, and it seemed closer somehow. Again, her head turned in its own direction, this time to her left. Her eyes squinted, and she moved closer. Cobwebs so it seemed. Reaching out to touch it with her finger, she realised it wasn't at all cobweb, but man made nylon made to the thickness of spider silk. She _thought_ there was unnatural sheen to it. _'How clever,' _she thought_. _

She pulled the web to one side and it swept in one wave with her hand like a curtain, revealing a spiral of wooden steps. At first glance, it looked as though it would collapse under the weight of a feather, though when she planted her feet upon them they held her without even a creak. With no hesitation she climbed, hr friends following idly behind her.

Reaching the top, she established that this was an attic of some sort. In the centre was a brightly coloured dome of glass. The picture painted onto it appeared to be Ultimecia sitting gracefully upon her lavish throne in her castle. Her violent eyes looked back at them in warning. Quistis scowled back at her. _'You're dead now, we killed you. Try and stop us now.' _She thought looking at the painting.

"Seifer, I can sense him, he must be in there." She pressed her face to the glass peering through it. She saw beings set into a semi circle, twenty of them, maybe more. In the middle, lay two lone figures, placed next to each other, surrounded in a blue aura. _'Oh Hyne.' _"Seifer's in there, I can see him. We must get in. Stand back, I'll summon Quezacotl to break the glass and hopefully loosen the defence down there too." Squall and Zell both nodded acknowledgement and backed away. Quistis stood in her familiar stance, ready for another summoning.

~*~

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Meanwhile…

The electric bird had continued to dive toward the floor of the temple, leaving a constant pulse of electricity around it. It killed all in its path, splintering the walls and making pillars and statues crumble to powder. When he was satisfied, he swerved gracefully, and perched on a high ledge, overlooking the outcome.

Meanwhile, Seifer lay in a heap, breathing shallow with his focus on nothing besides what lay in his line of vision. He felt hollow, yet relieved that the pain of having his soul, his strength, torn from his body in slow motion, had finally ended. He felt a different power during it though. Something had made sense, and he felt it surface when his soul was being taken apart. It arose from the very depths and it clicked in him somehow like a decade old equation that had just been solved. He had found part of his power. _'Could it of enabled me to contact Quistis? But how, I've learnt nothing about telepathy. Yet it didn't feel new to me. Almost routine, easy…but why Quistis? Was there some kind of special connection?' _He pondered. It wasn't that long ago when I saw her trying to take her own life. Her discontent face when she awoke the next morning. The words she said to him during that stupid argument that stung him like nettles. When he walked out on her. He remembered being happy to leave that room and not to see her, but what he wouldn't give to see her now. In fact, that would be the only way to make him satisfied. To be able to see the emotions in her eyes, her presence, even her smell. Then he'd feel safe. Only then and only her. '_Hyne I'm so tired,' _he thought. Taking another shallow breath, he closed his heavy eyes and all was black.

~*~

The three SeeDs descended to the ground, gripping onto Quezacotl's back. He had done a good job with all beings on sight dead, except a few that were still twitching because of the electrical current.

Without any other care, Quistis ran over to the lifeless form of Seifer Almasy. Even before she got there she feared he was dead, and when she was kneeling over him she was somehow convinced. Unwanted tears began to trickle down her face in a steady flow down her face onto his chin. He reached a hand to his face and stroked his cheek, running it gently under his chin to wipe away her own tears. "I…I'm sorry, I failed you again."

A short breath left his mouth at her touch. Opening his eyes, although blurred a little, he saw Quistis hunched over him, weeping, her eyes closed, with a sombre expression on her beautiful face. Just looking at her, made a great surge of emotion pass rush through him and it crashed over him in waves. Two tears formed in either eye, and proceeded to slide down his face in a symmetrical pattern until they disappeared into his hair. For the first time since early childhood, Seifer cried freely. _'She's here, she really is. She came to rescue me, my knight. I'm safe now.' _He thought happily. If he had the strength, he would have sat up and kissed her, held her in his arms and just keep that moment as long as possible. But he couldn't even smile. "Quistis." He croaked, almost inaudible. Her eyes shot open and their tear glazed eyes met in a gripping stare. She smiled down at him and wiped her eyes with her dusty sleeve. "I really thought you were dead. Don't ever do that to me again." She said. Sitting up, she hovered both hands over his chest, "curaga," she chanted. The white and blue magic spread over Seifer's body and glowed as if he were covered in a mass of fireflies. "Do you feel any better." She said, helping him up in to a sitting position. "Yeah just a bit. Thanks." She looked directly at her, and smiled genuinely.

Both Zell and Squall looked on at the spectacle. Zell with amusement, and Squall with a small understanding. He had nearly lost Rinoa so many times, and he knew the welcome feeling of relief that they were surely experiencing. _'I think they care about each other a little more than they realise themselves.' _He thought.

"Quistis, that woman, she has my strength. In that damn crystal." She looked at him in confusion. "What woman?" She questioned. Seifer pointed over to a figure lying on the ground. She was on her side in a rather uncomfortable angle, with her black hair spilled over her face and pooled around her like treacle. "Ultimecia's daughter, Lanea." She looked at him in surprise. _'But how did she get into this time? Ultimecia, she lived in the future and used Edea as- oh of course, this is her host.' _"This woman needs to get to Esthar quickly, to Dr. Odine." 

Seifer stiffened "Why the hell for? She needs to be killed, not contained in some science lab for crying out loud." He exclaimed.

"I can see why you feel that way, but really this woman is innocent. It isn't actually Lanea. It is just her mind that has been possessed, not her body. Lanea has used her physical body as a bridge to this time, like Ultimecia did to Edea, and you Seifer." She knew it was a mistake the moment it came out of her mouth. She could see the frown in his face and the malice in his eyes as her very existence was mentioned.

"…I see." He said, his voice emotionless. "I'm sorry, that was unnecessary."

"No, it's okay. I just need the crystal. It should still be in her hand." Quistis rushed over to the woman and kneeled over her. There were two crystals enclosed tightly in her hand, and Quistis had to prise it away. _'Why is there two?' _Lanea stirred and Quistis shot up abruptly. "Sleep." The simple status magic worked on her and any sound or movement was now erased. She was sound asleep again.

"Hey, guys, come here." Called Zell, how was waving his hands around from his position behind a fallen pillar. The three rushed over to him, Seifer being a little slower, still feeling weak. Quistis noticed, and went to steady him. He nodded in thanks. "She out's out cold, and taken a pretty big beating, but she's alive." Squall sat next to Zell and checked her wounds, seeing a red stain on her side. "There's a pretty big cut on her left side. It's deep so magic won't fully heal it but it should buy us some time." Squall held his hands just above her, and cast a full-life spell. The glittering magic took affect almost immediently and she seemed to have a little more life in her. She inhaled a large gulp of air, and opened her eyes gingerly. "What the-?" Seifer crouched by her side, taking her hand in his. "It's okay Felicity, you're safe now." Quistis felt a pang of jealousy toward this woman, Felicity or whoever she was. Seifer was being affectionate toward her and it annoyed her for some reason. She pouted unconsciously. "…You know her Seifer?" She asked. He looked up and smirked. "She's my sister. Don't even think about asking me about it, it's all too new to me, and it'll take time for me to even understand. It's a long story." She opened her mouth in a silent 'oh' feeling slightly embarrassed.

"Seriously, this place I creeping me out man, lets leave." Zell said, an uneasy tone in his voice. "Definitely agreed chicken-wuss. I think that's the most intelligent thing I've ever heard you say." The tint of sarcasm in Seifer's voice has re-emerged and for once, Quistis was happy to hear it. It brought a sense of normality into the situation. "Yes, lets go, we don't have long until others come. We'll get Selphie to bomb this place, I don't want to know about it again."

With Zell and Seifer supporting a dazed Felicity, Squall had picked up the sleeping Lanea. As quickly as they could, they traced the route back outside, where Selphie was waiting for them impatiently in the Ragnarock.

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haHA! Yay to me! I'm so relieved I got this done. I would have uploaded it last week, but because of my STUPID COMPUTER, it had erased itself, just before I saved it and *POOF*, it was gone. I very nearly cried. God bless flapjacks, they saved me from burning down my own house in rage. And ya know what, my loser step dad banned FF.net…?????? I can unblock it but I can't log in, urgh, what a loser. Anywayz, I'm okay with this chapter, I hope you are too…REVIEW! Hee Hee…. I have some shout outs to some of you, But don't blame me if I haven't included you, I love you all!

Aloura: I hope you did read my all my fic in the end. I hope you're not bored with it yet. Hope you update yours veeeerrrryyy soon, k?

Alonia: Well, I hope you didn't mind me using your stuff, I did give credit to your name I assure you. I used a couple of your poems from 'Twisted~Butterfly.' 'This shroud' and 'garbage.' I had to look for a modern author, looking at how you portray human emotion using language and other boring english terms. My teacher was quite impressed I have to say. Praise goes to you though, you're a great writer. Ohh and I registered to your messageboard. I'm on as my fff.net pen name and I'll be on there soon I hope, as sometimes it doesn't let me in.

Angelus: Alternate forms…mmmm, good idea that is. I was thinking of 'Devil may cry' at the time actually, but I'll have to get some feed back on what form he could take. Dante rules…but don't mention those damn witched with scissors, EEEK!

Kiana Kyoka: I may add a bit of Quall in there. Maybe as a scandal, not major romance, leave that to the Seiftis part. But that was my primary idea.

Dark fire angel: Hey, where is your fic? Are you re editing it? Hope so cause I was starting to like it. L 

…Who else? I don't actually know. I can't log in. I promise to mention you next time k? Thanx a lot everyone. J 

One last thing, please read and review a fic by 'Sumeragi Kousei,' called 'Elemancer.' She is a good friend of mine, and this is her first fic. And I'm not being biased when I say that it's good cos it really is, she's a good writer even if she thinks she isn't. I'm trying to get her to put Seiftis in there too. J 

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	9. Some kind of normality

I might be wrong by Mintaka 

Chapter 9- Some kind of normality The scene was strange though he felt calmer then he had a long time. He was lying by the side of Obel Lake, with his fingers running over the water. Next to him lay Quistis, her hand resting on his chest. It felt like he had been there for a while, though he couldn't remember anything but the present. "Since when did you care about me?" He said suddenly. 

"Since when did you notice, Seifer? I always have it's just you never took the time to see it. Jealousy overpowered you."

_"Oh yeah right what have I got to be jealous about?" He scoffed._

_"Don't pretend, you're not one for being naïve. You were watching his every move." _

_"So were you Quistis, you loved him." At that remark, she laughed bitterly._

_"Ha love? I doubt I even know what it is. Do you?" He had to pause._

_"I thought I loved you once. Once…before Squall came in your life." She smiled beneath him, secretly moved by his statement. She raised her head and placed her hand on the side of his face, forcing him to look at her._

_"Then I have a confession to make. I loved you too." He felt his heart soar and he smiled up at her. Without thought, he reached up and lightly placed his lips on hers. Pulling away he noticed a tear falling out of the corner of her closed eye. He caressed it with his thumb, taken aback with this display of emotion. _

_He was overcome with silence and something else, though he wasn't sure what it was. But it seemed to bleed into his thoughts, taking over. It was warm and familiar and he seemed to welcome it. He swore it was her…_

***

"Come on Seifer I know you're coming round, just open your eyes." She called to him gently, still holding his hand that was now twitching. She could see his eyes rolling in his head and the rough sounds from his mouth told her that he would become conscience.

"Quistis…" He choked out.

She sighed in relief holding back emotions that she didn't want to show. "Welcome back Seifer."

"Hyne my head, how long have I been asleep?"

"Almost a week. You passed out in the Ragnarock. Dr Kadowaki said you were in a mental coma. You had no strength left in you since Lanea took it from you." 

"Oh yeah I remember, did you get it back?" He said the sound of fatigue still in his voice.

"Only until recently. We had to build a link to your mind for us to do anything."

"So you _were there, it wasn't just a dream?" He hoped it wasn't._

"Well yes; since what happened when we rescued you, Edea thought I should be the only one to go inside."

"You went in my mind? Isn't that dangerous?"

"I wanted to take the risk." 

"…Thank you then." He said meekly.

"Well we needed you back here; you still have an exam to do remember." She said, trying to prevent the subject from getting too deep.

"Not just for bringing me back…out there too. I was so ready to die before I talked to you. You reassured me not to give up, not to be scared."

She gripped his hand tighter and looked up toward the window. "If only you could see how scared I was, my heart was thumping the whole time...I thought I was going to lose you." She wished she never said that. This was getting too close for comforts. She looked away from him suddenly hiding her blushing face.

Noticing her discomfort, he tried to lighten the mood. "Yeah well now I'm back. Back to terrorising the junior classmen, oh and Zell. I'm starting to miss it."

She giggled at his remark, she was glad to see the old Seifer for once. "Felicity's doing well by the way. She wants to enrol into Garden but will talk about it with you when you're well."

"Will I see her today? There are things I want to talk to her about too."

"Yes, I'll find her in a minute and tell her to come over. She'll be glad to see you awake, she's been quite concerned about you." Slowly she rose from the edge of the bed, brushing all the creases from her skirt. She had been there a longer than she needed to though she wasn't going to mention it to him. "Well I'll go and find her then." She said, "Oh, and by the way...I'm glad you're back." Reluctantly she turned away from him and exited his room. "Hey Quistis?" He called after her.

She turned quickly. "Yes?"

"…Nothing…"

"Oh, okay, well bye then." She seemed disappointed that he didn't say anything. He just didn't have the guts. To confront her about what he had thought about at Obel Lake. He didn't want to hear that it never happened. He didn't want to know that it was just a dream. 

***

"Seifer?" Came a familiar voice. He opened his eyes suddenly, turning to the brunette beside him.

"Sorry, did I wake you?" She said, concerned.

"No not really. I just nodded off."

"Well, Quistis said you were awake so I got here as fast as I could. So how are you feeling?"

"A bit groggy but nothing bad. How about you, how are you liking Balamb?"

"Oh it's beautiful, and people are being so nice to me, especially Quistis. She's been helping me out since I got here. But she's been here an awful lot too." He seemed surprised at first but realised she must have had to, to be able to put back his strength. He frowned ever so slightly. "Well I'm glad you're fitting in. Are you better since what happened?"

"Yes I'm fine. I'm a lot more accustomed to my powers than you are, seeing that they are so deep in your soul for you to reach and that I don't hold the same as you do. But now they've come to the surface and you realised part of that when you used telepathy to contact Quistis."

He sat up suddenly. "You knew about that?"

"She told me. She wanted to know what it meant."

"Oh I see. But tell me more about my powers."

"Well as you might remember, you were told about our parents. Mother was an angel, or a white sorceress. Father was a devil, a god. He had powers unimaginable. He could fuse with dark parts of his mind that were taken over by souls that he defeated. In the beginning he was summoned from an ancient spell by a dark wizard who was going to use his powers to fuse with a higher energy that would turn the world into a vicious dictatorship.

"Mother was sent to fuse with him to stop it. She went into his mind like Quistis did with you to seek out his humanity. That was what she fell in love with. The rest you know. Basically you inherited his abilities, but unfortunately you also inherited the dark souls; they are now inside you. But mother's powers act as a shield stopping them from taking over you."

He sat in silence at her explanation. "So Quistis went into my mind with those monsters?"

"…Yes, but she was strong and she resisted them. Her will kept her forward and she didn't care about the risk she was taking, she just wanted you back."

It hit him like a wrecking ball. She could have died for him. "So how do my powers work? How do I use them?" He said trying not to think about it.

"It's all in your mind, but I suggest that you go and see dad's grave. You might find some answers there."

He nodded and smiled at her. "You know, I really feel better. I think I might get up. I am starving, especially for a hotdog. Will you help me to my dorm so I can get some clothes?"

"Oh sure! But are you certain that you're okay, you might need some more rest." He laughed. "I think a week was enough besides, I think a good meal will bring me back to normal."

She beamed at him and offered an arm for him to lean on. As soon as his bare feet touched the ground, he began to shiver. Noticing a robe slung on the door handle, he reached for it. With a little help he got it on, and they slowly walked to his dorm. "I need my cardkey, I can't get in otherwise."

She smiled sheepishly "Oh, well I have it actually…Quistis let me in. Sorry I just wanted to know a bit more about you that's all." He laughed at her and shook his head.

As they let themselves in, the first thing he noticed was how tidy it was. Anything left on the floor before he left was all put away, his clothes carefully folded on the floor including a pair of his boxers which he just looked at in shock and embarrassment. What made it more embarrassing was the fact that he knew must have been Quistis. 

"Okay, well I'll go get you some food, you know how high demand those hotdogs are. But pull some strings with Zell don't worry. I'll meet you in the cafeteria. Bye!" She shut the door behind her, leaving Seifer standing in the middle of his dorm. He jumped on his bed and lay down with a sigh. _"I'm finally home."_

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_I'm bbbbaaacccckkkk!!!! Hope you haven't forgotten about me! Well I haven't had a computer for long, my parents split up and he took it. BUT yay for me I'm back online thanx to lots of moaning and sulking on my part._

_So what do you think? Good, bad terrible?? Any thoughts, or improvements to this would be god, and don't forget to REVIEW!! Please…_

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	10. Where it began

_ I might be wrong by Mintaka_

Where it began

****

****

Since the new part of the training centre opened a few weeks ago, Quistis saw it as a godsend. The monsters were more of a challenge and it provided good sources for her to let out any emotions she was keeping in and Hyne did she hell at the moment. Her mind had taken a cartwheel into the unknown and it bothered her. She wasn't used to so many emotions at one time especially when it involved Seifer.

With so much precision, she aimed the tip of her whip at the weak spot of her opponent. She had spotted the slight limp in the Ruby dragon's movements and used it to her advantage. The large jagged gash in its right leg oozed crimson blood, trickling down its leathery skin to the ground. The leg slumped leaving the beast vulnerable and before it could react to Quistis' attack, she cast triple blizzaga. From the back of its throat, it let out a bellowing roar and inched closer to her somewhat smaller form. She looked at it straight in the eye and smirked before casting meteor. The dragon finally went down with a mighty thud. Quistis looked at it with a sense of achievement though she thought it was a bit sloppy. To be honest it took quite a lot out of her, her breathing was hard and her hair was stuck wet to her face. She looked a state.

She never saw her spectator in the shadows. He was observing her battle with much interest, taking every move in. Having only being her student, he'd never seen her demonstrate her fighting abilities. He was impressed he had to admit. "Bravo Instructor bravo." He said, with a hint of sarcasm which she picked up on. "Back to normal I see." She replied. As he walked closer to her, she felt herself get self-conscience. She didn't particularly want him to see her so dishevelled or so downright disgusting. Hopelessly she tried to clean herself up which he noticed with amusement. "What the hell are you doing here anyway; shouldn't you be in the infirmary?" She said trying to avoid his expected scathing comments. "…Yeah, but I got bored and I felt kind of dirty considering I haven't had a shower in a week. How about you? Why are you here? It is 2am you know."

"Yeah I know that. I couldn't sleep that's all."

"I see…you looked pretty good out there."

She laughed a little too enthusiastically. "I doubt it. I felt as inexperienced as one of the junior classmen. I'm not as good as people think I am."

"You shouldn't put yourself down. I know it's not true." She looked at him sceptically. It wasn't everyday she got compliments from him.

"It's a bit dangerous out here, shall we go…" He didn't finish his sentence. She knew what it was, but he was waiting for some kind of consent. It wasn't something she wished to be reminded of what happened there though it was a surprise for them both. 

"Yeah I suppose. Come on then." They walked to the secret area in silence, briskly, side by side. The entrance was a little overgrown now; it wasn't used as often anymore. 

"I could've died here." She said finally.

"Lucky I was around then. But you know, I still don't know why you wanted to do it." She sighed and turned away from him. "I had my reasons. I felt like I didn't have a purpose anymore. Nothing and no one could help me. My loneliness made me so miserable and I hated it. I hated everyone who had someone. Selfish isn't it?"

"No, not really. You think the world's traitor doesn't know how that feels?" He took her by the shoulder and pulled her round to face him. "But trust me; you are stronger than you think. I know you can get over this. I will never doubt it." There was so much emotion in his eyes that it was hard to define any. Understanding, honesty, trust, compassion. It calmed her and she begun to feel the same though the under confident part of her still showed a little. "I don't doubt you either. Though you hide your feelings pretty well."

"I've had my moments believe me. Back when we were taken, I really lost it. I really thought I was going to die. I remember thinking; let justice be done. It's all you deserve for what you've done. Hyne, I guess you could say it's still true."

"No Seifer, you were manipulated, everything you did wasn't in your mind you know that."

"Yeah but I was too friggin weak to stop it." There was rising anger in his voice. It was obviously something he would carry with shame all his life.

"No you are _not _weak. You are one of the best fighters in Garden."

"If I'm so brilliant why did I never make it as SeeD? Why did I fail?" He shouted.

"Because of my failure to teach you, my failure to listen, to take notice. I was so convinced that I could win Squall that I didn't want to think that you were better."

"Now can you see why I always hated Squall? I wanted what he had though he was so bloody stupid to see it."

"Did I make you like that? So bitter?" Her voice was meek.

"I did it to myself." He answered.

Suddenly, she laughed softly. He looked at her in confusion.

"We're two of a kind."

"Why do you say that?" He asked.

"We share the same fears. We want the same things. We're so alike when you think about it."

"Yeah, I guess we are." She didn't answer, but looked ahead of her at the vast ocean and she could have almost laughed if the silence wasn't so awkward.

"I was thinking earlier on…about you. About why you are what you are. How you can have so much determination to do something. But when you've done what you set out to do, you're still not happy about it, there's still something wrong with it, like there was something you missed. Why is nothing you do good enough?"

She turned to him to find he was looking at her intently. She didn't even know if she could provide him an answer. "I don't really know. All I do know is that I can never be content, I'm always restless…I have no one else to judge what I do. I guess it makes me harder on myself…I doubt that even makes sense." 

"I understand. You just hate being on your own. I didn't know you were a romantic, Quistis." He smiled and waited for her embarrassment to show. She just stuttered for a bit and frowned at him. "You're ridiculing my weaknesses?"

"No…but I couldn't resist, sorry. I guess I feel the same. It would be nice to have someone, not to depend on, but to fall back on. Someone there who wants you, someone to make you realise that you're still alive."

He was cut up inside, she could see that. He concentrated so much in hiding how he felt that he was slowly killing himself. But there was no self pity there, just shame and guilt. Not to mention hate. With the back of her hand she reached out and stroked his cheek lightly. She felt him shudder under her touch. "Stop punishing yourself Seifer," she turned his face to her own and stepped a little closer to him. "Don't you see? You're not on your own, there will always be someone close to you, but they can't help you unless you let them."

"Like anyone would want to." He said, his voice shaky.

"Just believe." She brought her face to closer to him, and gently pressed her lips against his. She seemed to give herself to him and him to her. Physically it was just a kiss, but to them it was something else though they didn't know what. It began as what seemed as a gesture of comfort, but the passion grew and all the sadness and anger, loneliness and frustration was exposed. They were letting themselves go and they knew that only they could help each other. It felt almost natural to them at the time until they broke apart for a gasp of air. Both their breathing was heavy and ragged, their hearts pounding in their chests. As they looked at each other, reality hit hard and they were suddenly shy.

"..Um…we should go, I mean it's really late and all and I'm sure you're busy…"

"…Yeah, loads of papers to mark, and I really need a shower…" He then had the mental picture of her in the shower. Immediately he aimed his eyes for the ground refusing to meet his eyes.

"…Okay, well, bye Seifer. I might see you tomorrow." She said, equally awkward.

"…Yeah sure…"

Quickly she left and jogged all the way back to her dorm. As she closed the 

door, she looked at herself in the mirror, suddenly; she did something she hadn't done in a while. She laughed… 

_I'm done with chapter 10!! It took a while I know, but I lacked inspiration for a while_ _and I'm still not happy about it. But I' m not discouraged, 40 reviews! Thanks everyone, especially Firess Ifrit Devil, Quistis Almasy and Aloura. Thank you!! Anyway, enjoy… _


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